Poll: Democratic approval at 33%, GOP approval at 32%

1999-2010 Trend: Do You Approve or Disapprove of the Way the Republicans in Congress/the Democrats in Congress Are Handling Their Job?

Both parties’ ratings are on the low end of what Gallup has measured since the question was first asked in 1999. The Democratic Party’s current job approval rating is just three points above its low of 30% measured in December 2007. The historical low rating for congressional Republicans is 25% in December 2008.

Since early 2009, approval of the Democrats has generally trended downward, while the Republican approval rating has been mostly flat. This has resulted in a fairly notable situation in which the two parties in Congress currently receive similar ratings.

Over time, Americans have tended to give the Democrats in Congress at least slightly more positive ratings than the Republicans in Congress. This has been the case when the Democrats were in the majority as well as when they were in the minority; thus, being the majority party is not an obvious liability when it comes to these ratings.